Air and Space Museum unveils 5 new galleries as renovation nears end

Air and Space Museum unveils 5 new galleries as renovation nears end

The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum is opening five new and updated galleries Wednesday, just in time for the big 250th July 4 celebration.

Why it matters: The new spaces come as the museum nears the fall finish line of its nearly $1 billion renovation, which kicked off in 2018.

  • The opening also celebrates 50 years of the museum's building on the National Mall.

    • State of play: The launch includes two new galleries — and three that have been refreshed:

  • 🌀 U.S. National Science Foundation Discovering Our Universe: This new gallery guides you through the ins and outs of modern astronomy and some of the big breakthroughs in better understanding the universe. Think: the Event Horizon Telescope hard drives used to make the first black hole image.
  • 🚀 RTX Living in the Space Age Hall: This new area will showcase the evolution of space technology, with artifacts like the Skylab Orbital Workshop and a Hubble Space Telescope test vehicle.
  • 🎨 Flight and the Arts Center: This redesigned gallery has two exhibits — "The Art of Air and Space: Interpretations of Flight" displays work from the museum's 7,000-piece collection of air and space-related art, and "The Ascent of Rauschenberg: Reinventing the Art of Flight" is filled with on-theme pieces by the artist.
  • 🪖 Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air: This refreshed gallery outlines the role aviation played in World War II and includes period planes like a North American P-51D Mustang and the casing used for the "Little Boy" atomic bomb.
  • ✈️ Textron How Things Fly: This updated gallery is all about how things, well, fly and is filled with interactive exhibits that let visitors pilot a drone and walk through a wind tunnel.

    • Catch up quick: Big highlights from the museum's multiyear refresh include launching the Mars Cafe and the Northrop Grumman Planetarium, as well as several new exhibits that opened last year.

    What we're watching: The last two galleries are slated to open this fall.

    If you go: It's free to visit, but guests can reserve timed-entry passes.

    The wind tunnel in the Textron How Things Fly gallery. Photo: Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, Daniel Soñé

    The Jay I. Kislak World War II in the Air gallery. Photo: Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, Daniel Soñé

    "The Art of Air and Space: Interpretations of Flight" in the Flight and the Arts Center. Photo: Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, Michael Persaud